Do my dental credentials actually matter to patients?
On their own, almost not at all. I will say that bluntly because dentists spend years and real money chasing letters after their name and then assume the patient is impressed. The patient has no idea what a fellowship or a diplomate status means. To them it is alphabet soup. The credential only matters when you translate it into what it does for them. Frame it as loss prevention. This training and this credential mean I am far less likely to make the mistake that costs you a failed implant or a redo. That sentence lands. The letters alone do not. So keep earning the credentials, but never hand them to a patient raw. Always finish the thought by connecting the credential to a risk you are protecting them from, because that is the only version they actually hear.
If the answers you are finding here resonate with you, my team and I work with a small group of clients each year. The next step is a complimentary Discovery Consultation and Practice Review with Dr. McAnally.